At Home With Valerie

A personal note from Valerie: When you’re building a team, whether it’s in real estate, music, or sports, the players can’t be great at the same things. It seems obvious, but it’s surprising how many people are drawn to form partnerships with people who are good at the same things they’re good at. There’s a natural tendency for people to place a higher value on people who have skills similar to their own. Salespeople respect good salespeople. Writers value talented writers. It’s a form of self-validation. You’re predisposed to like those who mirror your interests and talents. In the long run, though, you can’t form valuable partnerships if the skill sets of the players are the same. Six great salespeople can be a disaster if there’s not a rock solid office manager behind the scenes, keeping the sales team coordinated. A field full of quarterbacks might score occasionally, but they’ll never win the Super Bowl. The challenge, then, in team building, is to set asid...

Please note: the following article applies to the United States only. To the best of the my knowledge, no such program as indicated in this article is available in Canada. Think you can’t afford a home on a teacher’s salary? Think again. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development can help you get into a house for 50% off the listing price. Learn more here… Believe it or not, you might be eligible to do just that. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has a program called “Good Neighbor Next Door,” designed to help put hardworking people in homes for a significant discount. From the HUD website: “Law enforcement officers, pre-Kindergarten through 12th grade teachers, firefighters and emergency medical technicians can contribute to community revitalization while becoming homeowners through HUD's Good Neighbor Next Door Sales Program. HUD offers a substantial incentive in the form of a discount of 50% from the list pric...

A great gardener knows that well-maintained tools make working outdoors a joy rather than a chore. Here are some tips for making sure your tools are in tip-top shape this season. Gardening season is here, and the experience can be a pleasure or a pain depending on the quality and care of your tools. While the last thing on your mind after a long day in the sun working on your garden is taking care of your tools, there are some simple routines you can use to make sure your equipment is good to go the next time you reach for them. Gunk, moisture, and dullness are the biggest enemies to a healthy garden tool collection, so here’s how to address the biggest offenders: 1. Rinse, scrub, and dry. You need to knock the soil off the tools and work it out of the hinges. Tapping the tools to break the big clumps loose is a good idea, but you don’t want to chip the edges. Swing by the garden hose and rinse the tools. It might even be worth keeping a rigid-b...

During the summer months, don’t you want to enjoy as much as you can of the great outdoors? One way to enhance your enjoyment is by creating a “California Room” for your home. Some summer hours are too beautiful to be ignored. Whether those dewy dawns before the sun is at full strength, or the long evening hours when the heat bleeds off the day, there are times when being outdoors is a tremendous pleasure.  But this doesn’t mean you always want to spread out a blanket or a lawn chair. In fact, creating a “transitional space” which blends outdoor living with indoor amenities is a great way to maximize the season. The California room is just one of those spaces. California rooms are typically situated in the rear of a home, sometimes connected to the home by sliding glass doors. The California room is usually a covered space with flowing outdoor fabrics and durable, luxurious “indoor” style furniture such as chaise lounges, couches, ottoma...